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Excavation  By  cover art

Excavation

By: James Rollins
Narrated by: John Meagher
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Publisher's summary

High in the Andes, Dr. Henry Conklin discovers a 500-year-old mummy that should not be there. While deep in the South American jungle, Conklin's nephew, Sam, stumbles upon a remarkable site nestled between two towering peaks, a place hidden from human eyes for thousands of years. Ingenious traps have been laid to ensnare the careless and unsuspecting, and wealth beyond imagining could be the reward for those with the courage to face the terrible unknown. But where the perilous journey inward end - in the cold, shrouded heart of a breathtaking necropolis - something else is waiting for Sam Conklin and his exploratory party. A thing created by Man, yet not humanly possible. Something wondrous . . . something terrifying.

©2000 Jim Czajkowski (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers

What listeners say about Excavation

Average customer ratings
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  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • 3 Stars
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  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars

Shakes my status as a fan of Rollins

I can only truely describe this book with one word..."Cheesey". This is my first review, and the only reason I am bothering is because the book was so bad, and the overall rating is so good, that I needed to express my thoughts before some other poor soul got sucked into buying it, as I did, based on a weak but passable three and a half star rating. What are you people thinking? The main characters are from Texas (as am I) and the are so dumb. It is a good thing each of them has a good woman by his side to help him think or they would never have figured this out. And of course we have the Gay coward that turns out to be a hero, and the 10 year old child prodigy savage nicotine addict to drop hints to them when they all get confused. The most common phrase uttered by both "heros" is "Whut?" in a horrible, horrible Texas drawl that just drilled my teeth. On the plus side, this is the worst book I have ever read, so I guess life has been good to me. One star was the least I could give it.

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14 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Fast Paced Thriller

Fast paced; action is continuous. There are essentially two main characters; when the action relative to one of the characters lessens, the author "switches" to the other character so that things are always at a fever pitch. Although this may seem confusing, the author has defined the relationship between the two such that the switching between characters develops the overall plot without being contrived. Interest remains peaked as the two lead characters work towards a single resolution of the story. The only negative about the book is that the relationship between the male lead characters and their respective female love interests is trite and predictable.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Didnt have the same spice as child / preston books

First off let me say I love child preston books. All amazing in their own right. As this book has similar qualities to the child preston books I tried it. Although I did enjoy it it didnt leave me thinking about it days later as the child preston books do.

Also have to say I didnt enjoy the narrarator much. Another reason I love the child preston books (scott brick is a god)

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Great blend of history and science

I'm generally a fan of Mr. Rollins use of history, science and fiction to create a unique brand of entertaining storytelling. I enjoyed a lot.

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Good Story But...

Any additional comments?

This story was good but to me the parts that really had me interested were rushed through. I thought the crew was really going to get into some long term good action and investigation when they entered the cavern but to me it fell flat. It seemed like an Indiana Jones book with about half the action. In my opinion the story fell kind of flat about 3/4 of the way though. I would recommend a listen just don't have expectations so high as I did to not disapoint. One question I never did get the answer to is: What did the markings on the back of the cross mean? Anyone?

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • JG
  • 02-10-11

waste of time and money!

I'm not a big reviewer, but have to share that I was unable to even make it through the second part of this book. BORING. And the narrator is one of the worst. Probably the coolest guy - but his voice is very difficult for me to listen to. Wish I could get both my money and my time back.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Good, but not his best.

I stumbled upon James Rollins by chance, and I really enjoy his writing style. That said, this was not his best book. It has his trademark "magic that is actually science" and "history meets present" style that I enjoy. However, the book was very slow going and dragged in some places. I also felt that (unlike in his fascinating Sigma books) some of the characters were a little flat and unrelatable. He is true to form with a great reveal of secrets, but the listener's journey to the climax is a long one.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars

Wow, this book is really bad

Would you try another book from James Rollins and/or John Meagher?

This book is so full of clichés, and the narrator was so poor, I didn't even bother to finish listening to this book. Honestly, it was that bad. Only very rarely will I quit an audiobook, but this one was simply too painful to continue. This was my first James Rollins book, but I won't spend money on anything he's written again. I've found the rating on Audible to trustworthy, so I've no idea how this book got a four star rating. Beware!

What was most disappointing about James Rollins’s story?

It was full of clichés and every ten minutes the characters were in life threatening situations that they miraculously escape again and again and again and ... you get the picture. The characters were carboard cut-outs, and there were so many history lessons couched as absurdly unnatural dialogue, it was honestly painful to listen to.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of John Meagher?

I've been so impressed with the narrators that Audible chooses; John Meagher's poor performance really stands in sharp contrast to other Audible narrators. His voice characterizations all sounded similiar, and his affected accents were very poor. His narration voice was frankly irritating. Almost anyone else would have been an improvement. I'm not trying to be mean or nasty, but honestly, this book was poorly done.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

I'm afraid not. I love books and good stories, but this one simply did not live up to Audible standards.

Any additional comments?

Enough said.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Tough characters to voice

Any additional comments?

The story is great, no complaints there, and the narrator did a decent job... excepting some difficult characters to voice. The main characters all have distinct accents; Two men with Texas accents, a Boston accent, a (female) Irish accent, and several South American accents. Put them all together and it got to be fairly distracting at times.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

story had a good plot and listened well.

easy read and keeps you engaged! a good book to travel with...I recommend this to those who let their imaginations go free

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1 person found this helpful